Italy's 4-1 win over Türkiye in Türkiye vs Italy was shaped by the scoreboard and the ratings. Francesco Pio Esposito finished with 8.92, the highest mark on the night, while Michael Kayode and Davide Frattesi both posted 8.2. Alessandro Bastoni also got on the scoresheet, and the pattern was clear by half-time.

Italy's attacking core in Bursa

Bastoni struck in the 9th minute, Frattesi followed in the 22nd, and Kayode added Italy's third in the 27th. That was the spell that turned the game into a rout, with three different types of contribution showing up in quick succession: a centre-back opener, a midfield runner arriving at the right time, and a right-back driving forward from deep.

Kayode's display stood out because it was not built around one isolated action. Matteo Selli wrote that Türkiye's defender “suffers tremendously from Kayode's overlaps, losing him systematically and freeing him twice for a shot and helping create the 0-3.” The wording fits what the match looked like, a full-back who kept offering an outlet and kept forcing mistakes.

Frattesi's role was more direct. He scored the second goal and kept the tempo high through midfield, which is exactly the sort of showing Italy have needed from him when the game opens up early. Bastoni, meanwhile, gave the match its first break and let Italy play on the front foot.

Pio Esposito's finish and Türkiye's reply

Türkiye did manage a brief response after the break. Y. Yilmaz made it 3-1 in the 47th minute, before Francesco Pio Esposito answered two minutes later with Italy's fourth. Ivan Cardia described him as “a Van Persie-style diving header” and said he was “the reference point for all his teammates, who play through him and get back great balls to play.”

That lines up with the numbers as well as the eye test. Pio Esposito ended with one goal and one assist, and his 8.92 was the best rating in the match. In a game where Italy had already done most of the damage before the interval, he still found a way to make the final phase look tidy rather than merely comfortable.

The interesting part for Italy is not just the 4-1 scoreline. It is that the match gave them a right-sided outlet in Kayode, a midfield runner in Frattesi, and a striker in Pio Esposito who was involved in almost everything that mattered. Bastoni's opener set the tone, but the newer names made the strongest case in Bursa.

Written by Sam Whitfield with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 3 outlets. How we work →